What does "syncopation" mean?

The contraction of a word by means of loss or omission of sounds or syllables in the middle thereof.

How do you pronounce "syncopation"?

Pronounced //ˌsɪŋ.kəˈpeɪ.ʃən//.

Common synonyms include: accent displacement, acid rock, andante, andante tempo, avant-garde jazz, ballroom music.

/ˌsɪŋ.kəˈpeɪ.ʃən/ noun

noun ·Uncommon ·College level

Noun

1
The contraction of a word by means of loss or omission of sounds or syllables in the middle thereof. uncountable, usually
2
music (especially dance music) that has a syncopated rhythm wordnet
3
The quality of a rhythm being somehow unexpected, in that it deviates from the strict succession of regularly spaced strong and weak beats in a meter. uncountable, usually
4
a musical rhythm accenting a normally weak beat wordnet
5
(phonology) the loss of sounds from within a word (as in ‘fo'c'sle’ for ‘forecastle’) wordnet

"Jazz makes heavy use of syncopation."

From syncopate + -ion. The phonological sense was first attested in English in the 1530's, the musical sense in the 1590's.